Has anyone done the $29/week food stamp challenge?

[clairebeautiful]

Well if it is a £19 a week per person, then going by the fact that we normally only spend £200 per month between the 2 of us at a higher end supermarket in the UK (Waitrose)... that is roughly £40-50 a week between the 2 of us, including cleaning products, toiletries etc I can't see that it would be particularly difficult. Is it meant to include things like toilet paper, washing up liquid, washing powder etc, because my £200 per month does.

You make a good point here. I currently do not spend $29 a week per person on food in my house, and we eat quite well. For my family of 6, my current grocery average is $105 a week. This includes all food, beer, toiletries, OTC meds, and paper products. That's only $26 a person for everything and we eat plenty of meat and fresh veggies.

I'm not sure what Gwyneth Paltrow was doing, but I'm curious now. If she failed she must have been trying to do eat in her normal way? I mean, I just don't know. California doesn't seem like it would have higher food prices, considering most of my produce on the East coast comes from there.... hm.

 

[sorrowscall]

I can spend $29 a week for food and be very happy. I do not eat a lot of meat, I love fruit and vegetables and beans which do not cost alot. If a person is aware of what they are eating they may be surprised to realize they eat alot of junk and prepared food, which will cost more money.

Do you do the thing as well where you buy a can of soup that is at it's most basic? For instance, a $0.45 can of tomato soup and then add into it ingredients you already have at your home? Oh! Another lovely idea is to grow some of your own herbs and spices organically. My family does that up here and I'm surprised at how much they save a month simply by doing that; as well as getting to use much fresher ingredients.

 

[Diane Lane]

Food stamps are meant to be supplemental to the person's already existing amount available for food and other household items, not the entire amount, so it shouldn't have to include cleaning products and paper goods, but I think those items often are included for those on really tight budgets. I don't understand where the $29 comes from, because those I've known (and seen) with food stamps get huge amounts of money. That's why there are cartoons going around with pictures of meat and luxury food-filled refrigerators of those with food stamps, versus middle class empty fridges. I don't understand how some get so much money on their EBT cards (what food stamps are called here), because I've had clients in the past who bought reasonable amounts of food and items I tend do buy when I'm short on money, such as more peanut butter, bologna, etc., but I know some do get multiple hundreds of dollars.

 

[kana_marie]

It's possible if you go somewhere cheap enough, and if you buy 4 weeks worth at a time.

 

[kana_marie]

Food stamps are meant to be supplemental to the person's already existing amount available for food and other household items, not the entire amount, so it shouldn't have to include cleaning products and paper goods, but I think those items often are included for those on really tight budgets. I don't understand where the $29 comes from, because those I've known (and seen) with food stamps get huge amounts of money. That's why there are cartoons going around with pictures of meat and luxury food-filled refrigerators of those with food stamps, versus middle class empty fridges. I don't understand how some get so much money on their EBT cards (what food stamps are called here), because I've had clients in the past who bought reasonable amounts of food and items I tend do buy when I'm short on money, such as more peanut butter, bologna, etc., but I know some do get multiple hundreds of dollars.

The reason some people get hundreds of dollars is because they have a lot of children. In my area, people with no children can still get food stamps, and they will be allotted 86$ a month. That's around 21$ a month. So the $29 is being generous. People want to complain about the poor having a fridge full of gourmet food. That joke comes from a very dark place in someone's soul that would have us leave starving poor people to fend for themselves in a country that has made it illegal to grow a grade in certain places or hunt and kill your own food unless you want to spend money on a hunting license, or fishing license. I hunt and have a garden, but I live in the middle of no where, 30 minutes from the nearest town. If I lived in a city, where doing anything you can to feed your starving family is illegal, I don't know if me and mine would be able to survive. Just because someone's idea of utopia doesn't include starving families, it doesn't make them less real.

 

[Diane Lane]

The reason some people get hundreds of dollars is because they have a lot of children. In my area, people with no children can still get food stamps, and they will be allotted 86$ a month. That's around 21$ a month. So the $29 is being generous. People want to complain about the poor having a fridge full of gourmet food. That joke comes from a very dark place in someone's soul that would have us leave starving poor people to fend for themselves in a country that has made it illegal to grow a grade in certain places or hunt and kill your own food unless you want to spend money on a hunting license, or fishing license. I hunt and have a garden, but I live in the middle of no where, 30 minutes from the nearest town. If I lived in a city, where doing anything you can to feed your starving family is illegal, I don't know if me and mine would be able to survive. Just because someone's idea of utopia doesn't include starving families, it doesn't make them less real.

There are people who get hundreds of dollars in food stamps without huge amounts of children. I don't begrudge anyone needed food. I know families who have several children and receive a large amount of food stamps and can afford good food. Those are the people who work hard when they can, and do for themselves.They use the system for support when they need it, which is how it was designed. i don't have a problem with those who are genuinely struggling, and need a hand up.

I do have a problem with welfare cheats, though. Most taxpayers I know are struggling to put food on their tables and keep a roof over their heads, and I don't approve of people making the lives of those people more difficult, because they're being taxed to death to provide for cheaters. I've been in need a time or two, and have witnessed it. I've also worked within the system, so I know some of what goes on. I don't know exactly how they do it, because my mind doesn't work that way, but there are people who seem to get a thrill from gaming the system at the expense of others, and they're really good at it. I don't know if you've encountered them or not, but I can promise you, they exist. I've seen them, and have encountered them when I was in need. Those are the people most mean when they complain about the 'poor' having a fridge full of gourmet food. I put it in quotes, because we all know they aren't really poor, and they're taking away from those who are legitimately in need.

I agree with you regarding the government regulating us to death, and preventing us from doing many things that could enable us to be more independent. No one without children qualifies for food stamps here, unless s/he has a very low income threshold, which would mean living with others sharing the rent, not paying rent, or living in subsidized housing, which is impossible to get into, unless you go to the gang-infested areas. The people I know who have a problem with the cheats realize that there are real people in need, and they have no problem with their tax dollars helping those people. Those families in need are often the children or grandchildren of those same people, since many of the jobs the parents and grandparents were able to support families on no longer exist.

 

[DancingLady]

I do it regularly, I didn't know there was such a challenge, my personal goal is under $20 per week, which I feel is totally doable.

 

[kana_marie]

There are definitely cheats out there. There are people who even choose welfare as their way of life. I'm with you and don't understand how they do it. I know there are laws and rules meant to prevent the cheaters and users... Apparently there are loopholes. I've known people who took every cent they could get from the government, and spent their money on 600$ cameras and really big and loud stereos. I would be foolish if I pretended they didn't exist. These people make it hard for the families who really need help and give poor people a very bad name.

I look at it the same way as I do the death penalty. I had rather 50 guilty men go free than 1 innocent person get the needle. I had rather see 50 families take pictures of their ebt card with a 600$ camera than read about 1 family starving.
And, for the record, even in this day and age families are literally starving to death. A family in Florida all starved to death, one after the other, a while back. And things have only gotten harder since then.
Its absolutely barbaric to make anyone go hungry. As far as I'm concerned people on food stamps should not buy a 2014 Dodge Charger or a 1500$ gold watch. But food? Why does anyone care what anyone else eats? It's just food. I can't remember the last time I could afford steak, but I'm not going to complain about someone else who eats it. Food is food. And everyone is entitled to enjoy what they eat once in a while. Lets he honest, take any given family on food stamps, and do the math. How much of your tax money is actually being spent on that family? If I remember correctly you at most contributed $0.10 a year. If people want to complain, why is it always about poor people who needs help? Why not complain about corporate welfare and bail outs? ALOT more of your tax money goes there.